Find Me True Love
by Orenji.Tea
Summary: AU. Prince Takuto is forced by his otousan, Lord Wakaouji, to find a woman to become his wife before he retires. Takuto finally finds a girl that he wants to spend the rest of his life with. But can true love be torn apart by jealousy and hatred?
1. Wife Hunting

Find Me True Love

By: Orenji.Tea

Genre: General/Alternate Universe/Romance

Pairing: Mostly Takuto/Mitsuki, some bits of Takuto/Meroko, and Misuki/Izumi

Rated: R

Summary: A/U. Prince Takuto is forced by his otou-san, Lord Wakaouji, to find a woman to become his wife before his he retires. Takuto finally finds a girl that he wants to spend the rest of his life with but does she love him back? Can true love be torn apart by jealousy and hatred?

A/N: This is my second overall fic that I wrote but my first time doing a chaptered one. I hope that everyone enjoys this one. I do not have everything planned out on what is going to happen so I will be playing it by ear and develop the plot as it goes on. Hopefully, I will be able to get a lemon into this! ) Again, I would like to thank duoduel, my beta. Enjoy guys.

Disclaimer: I do not own any of the characters. I am merely borrowing them. ) They all belong to Arina Tanemura. As well, the lyrics in the middle of the fic are from the song Eternal Snow by Changin' My Life. It is featured as the 3rd ending for the anime.

* * *

Chapter 1: Wife Hunting

"Promise me, okay?" the little girl sitting beside him said with a big smile on her face. He watched as she stretched out her baby pinky and waited for him to seal the promise. He looked down at himself to find that he was a little boy once gain. He quickly glanced at the girl next to him but everything was too blurry to make out who she was.

'_This must be a dream,' he thought as he looked at his surroundings. Everything was hazy but he could see that he was in a large garden with lots of beautiful hana and sakura blossoms blooming all around him. He was sitting next to a large water fountain and next to the little girl who he had no idea was._

_Who was this girl? She seemed vaguely familiar and only a few years younger than him. It was like he knew her. But from where? _

"_Who are you?" he asked with a puzzled look on his face while the girl was still sticking forth her pinky for him to do the same._

"_What do you mean, Takuto?" she giggled, "…You seem to be acting weirdly today."_

_Still seeing his confused face, she added, "All I want you to do is promise me, Takuto!"_

"_Promise you what?" he asked._

"_Promise that you will be with me forever and ever, silly!" she giggled again and flipped her long pink hair back behind her shoulder._

"_Takuto-kun, you have such short-term memory!" she joked and took his larger hand in her smaller ones, "You also promised that you would marry me one day too! Remember, on the hill a few days ago?" _

"_Uhh, not really," he said quietly and heard her sigh. _

"_You'll remember one day I'm sure," she said and closed the distance between them. "Takuto…"_

_He heard her sigh happily and wrapped her arms around his own. "Takuto, promise me that you won't leave me for another girl," she quietly but seriously, "I have a feeling that another girl is going to come today to take you away from me."_

_Takuto had no idea what she was saying. 'Is she trying to tell me something?' he thought to himself._

_He tried to scoot away from her but her grip on him was like steel. He sighed in defeat. He didn't even know who this girl was…or did he? He was truly confused._

"_Me-chan!" a voice behind them called, "It's time to go home now."_

_He was relieved when the small girl let go of his arm and ran towards the woman waiting for her. He turned around to see who it was._

'_Must be her mother,' he thought as they disappeared into the fog, leaving him alone in the garden. 'Wait a second…Me-chan?' _

_Her name seemed oddly familiar.

* * *

_

"Takuto-sama! Haiyaku onegai-shimasu!" the voice pleaded out.

There was a sound of shuffling of a tray and a few boxes before the small maid exited his chambers, leaving his breakfast on the table. Takuto sighed as he lazily folded his arms and put them under his head, staring up at the ceiling.

The dream that he had certainly had been weird. It had been recurring to him again and again for the past few nights and he really wanted to know why.

'Could it mean something?' he thought. He tried to remember if he ever had a girl as a childhood friend when he was younger and if he had ever promised her anything but it just didn't come to his head. He had a feeling that the dream was telling him something was going to happen, soon.

'Maybe,' he considered. But he had other things to think about, more important things on his mind such as what was going to happen today. Picking a wife. Marriage. What fun. He was definitely not looking forward to it.

A few months ago, his otou-san, Lord Wakaouji of the Eastern Lands, had demanded that he had to start looking for a woman to marry and who would help him rule the Eastern lands after he retired of old age. So far over the past few days, many princesses and young noble ladies had arrived from all over Japan to come and see if they would make a suitable wife for him, and none of which he really took a liking of.

'Why even bother marrying,' he was beginning to think as he got up from the bed slowly.

Today was the last day the women would be coming to see him. If he didn't choose someone that he was going to spend the rest of his life with today, his otou-san would skin him alive! He dreaded it…

"Takuto-sama!" he heard the maid holler again.

"Alright, alright, I'm coming already!" he yelled.

He walked into his walk-in closet to find some clothes. He tossed out a pair of jeans, a nice red t-shirt…nothing formal or special like how he was supposed to be dressing like since he was a prince. He really didn't give a damn about looking or dressing like one.

He looked at the clock that hung on top of his fireplace. "Kuso!" he cursed. If he didn't hurry, he was going to be late. He quickly dressed and checked his appearance one last time in front of the mirror before he ran out of his chambers and down the grand staircase leading to the grand hall.

* * *

"Lord Wakaouji-sama, presenting Kagahomi-hime!" the announcer shouted.

Takuto sighed and shifted in his seat. He had absolutely no interesting these girls that were coming in. Either they were all too overdressed or they had too much make-up masking their face. Some of them also seemed like they were trying too hard to impress him and capture his attention when they did a little dance or something to show off a little bit of their talent.

For some reason, his father had required them all to show off a "talent" that they had. He had no idea why he required them to do that since he wasn't a person to like a certain person just because they had talent. He really thought that it was stupid. After a while as the girls continued to come in, he shifted his gaze over to his father to see if he was enjoying the whole event.

"Shinotami-hime, my Lord!" the announcer piped.

He watched as his father nodded, acknowledging the announcer. Seeing his son looking at him, Lord Wakaouji met his son's eyes. "Nan desu ka?" he asked.

"Iie, it's nothing," Takuto replied and looked back at the long line of women waiting their turn outside of the hall. He didn't even want to think of what would happen if he didn't choose one of the girls to marry today. His father had once been nice and kind to him, but lately over the past few years, there had been a lot of tension between them since the war against the other parts of Japan had recently started.

He was dreading the end of the day and now there were only three line-ups left of girls waiting. He watched the last few bunch of women taking careful notice to see if they had pretty features, a good act, or just overall good-natured looking. None to his satisfaction unfortunately.

His heart sank when he saw the line up outside. Only around five girls left and he would have to make his decision after. He didn't want to spend the rest of his life with someone he didn't even want to be with, someone that he didn't love.

'Kuso!' he thought, 'Why did otou-san have to get him to marry now of all times! Why couldn't I just find someone I like when the time is right, like how a normal person would!'

Finally, there was only one girl left in line. His heart sank to his toes. 'Please be the one,' he repeated to himself over and over again. He was truly afraid to look up. He crossed his fingers and just as the girl arrived, he looked up.

The first thing he saw was the prettiest—no, the most beautiful girl he had ever laid eyes on. 'Is my mind playing tricks on me?' he thought to himself.

Stunned by her beauty and gracefulness as she walked up closer to the throne where his father and he sat, he couldn't look away as he sat there with his mouth open, gawking at her.

"My Lord, I present to you the very last princess we have brought here today. Mitsuki-hime from the Northern Lands of Japan!" the announcer announced with an air of finality.

There was clapping and then silence when the audience watching the presentation waited for the girl to do her special performance for the Lord of the Eastern Lands and his son. Takuto watched eagerly as he waited. He still hadn't looked away from her the entire time.

He definitely couldn't get enough of her. She had beautiful blue eyes that you could just sit and feel like you were drowning in the dark pools of water, and her silk curls were a beautiful colour of dark brown pinned to the side of her head, flowing down gracefully. Her lips were small but cute with the colour of pinkish-red like the sakura blossoms he had blooming in his private garden. Oh, how he wanted to brush his thumb against her lips and watch them tremble from his touch. And her skin, it was as white and as creamy as snow with a tint of pink on her cheeks. The girl smile and he watched little dimples appear on either side of her cheek.

'Kawaii,' he thought in a daze.

Finally after the whole hall was silent, Princess Mitsuki stepped up closer to the throne. She slowly closed her eyes and opened her mouth and started to sing.

_Kimi wo suki ni natte Dorekurai tatsu no kana? _

_Kimochi Fukurande yuku bakari de_

_Kimi wa Kono omoi kidzuiteiru no kana?_

_Ichido mo kotoba ni wa Shitenai kedo_

_Yuki no youni Tada shizukani_

_Furitsumori Tsudzukete yuku_

_Hold me tight Konna omoi nara_

_Dareka wo suki ni naru kimochi_

_Shiritaku Nakatta yo_

_I love you Namida tomaranai_

_Konnan ja Kimi no koto_

_Shirazuni ireba Yokatta yo_

_Kimi wo itsumade omotteiru no kana?_

_Tameiki ga mado garasu Kumoraseta_

_Yureru kokoro Tomosu kyandoru de_

_Ima Tokashite Yukenai kana?_

_Hold me tight Oreru hodo tsuyoku_

_Kogarashi Fubuki ni deatte mo_

_Samukunai youni to_

_I miss you Kimi wo omou tabi_

_Amikake no Kono mafuraa_

_Konya mo hitori Dakishimeru yo_

_Eien ni furu yukiga aru nara_

_Kimi he to tsudzuku kono omoi Kakuseru no kana?_

_Hold me tight Konna omoi nara_

_Dareka wo suki ni naru kimochi_

_Shiritaku Nakatta yo_

_I love you Mune ni komiageru_

_Fuyuzora ni sakebitai_

_Ima sugu kimi ni Aitai yo_

It was the most beautiful song he had ever heard and she had the sweetest and most pure voice too. It was unbelievable how there was like a goddess in front of him. She had the looks and even the voice, the talent. She had it all. Yes, this was the girl he wanted to marry. He wanted to be with her day and night for the rest of his life.

"Arigato gozaimasu," she said quietly and gave a little curtsy.

There was a pause as the crowd took in what they had just heard and murmured among themselves. Soon, the crowd was cheering as they applauded her spectacular performance.

Takuto watched attentively as the many servants ushered the girl out of the hall into her chambers where she would be staying the night. Soon she had disappeared from his view and the guests also started to leave to retire to their chambers for the night.

After everyone exited, his otou-san and him were the only ones left in the hall. "My son," his father spoke, "What do you say about the fine women? They were absolutely beautiful."

"H-hai, they were," Takuto lied. What was he supposed to say? That they all weren't to his taste? His otou-san would have slapped him on the face. Hard.

'Okay,' he thought to himself, 'just relax. Just make him happy.' That was the policy.

"Ne," Lord Wakaouji said, "Has any one of them caught your eye?"

Takuto nodded. "Hai. Princess Mitsuki –"

"Princess Mitsuki you say," he said interrupting with a smile on his face. "Now that, is an excellent choice I must say so myself."

Takuto was creeped out when he said that but he ignored it. His dad was probably just a little on the crazy side.

"Then the wedding will take place a month from today so that you will have a little time to get…acquainted with your to-be wife."

"Arigato gozaimasu otou-san," Takuto thanked him. "Arigato, arigato."

As he exited the banquet hall and walked back to his chambers, he couldn't help but feel a bit giddy and out of his character, like he was drunk. 'Mitsuki,' he repeated to himself. He just loved the way her name rolled off his tongue.

* * *

Mitsuki sighed as she sat down on her queen-sized bed. Today had been wonderful as she had presented herself to Lord Wakaouji and his son, Prince Takuto. She had been fascinated by how things worked in this castle.

She had sung her heart out as the act of talent she was to expose. She actually really loved to sing. It was her passion ever since she was young and she would usually sing while she worked back at home.

Today she had remembered to smile and pretend to be very princess and lady-like. She even remembered to curtsy!

'How do people afford such luxuries?' she pondered to herself as she looked around the room where there were expensive furniture and decoration.

The truth was, Mitsuki wasn't actually a real princess from the Northern states of Japan. She was actually a peasant girl from a very poor and unfortunate family. But for some odd reason, someone entered her name in the list of people to attend the 'selection of Prince Takuto of the Eastern Lands' possible wife' event. She had just agreed to come when the people had contacted her that she was accepted.

She had always wanted to travel to different parts of Japan, which wasn't possible since her family had very little money. As well, she had also heard from rumors going around that Prince Takuto was quite handsome and she really wanted to see just _how_ handsome he was. And boy was he handsome! She thought that she would die when she saw how cute he was. He was probably a few years older than her but age definitely didn't matter to her.

It really had been all for fun to pretend that she was a real princess from the Northern States of Japan. She had been treated so nicely by the people who had made her look like how she was now by doing her make-up, dressing her up and doing her hair. Well, that was probably because they all thought that she _was _a real princess. Overall, it truly was a lovely experience and she really appreciated it.

'But tomorrow, it will all be over,' she thought sadly. It didn't really bother her though since she would be back with her family again (well, her grandmother and their family friend, since her parents had already died when she was very young).

"Arigato obaa-chan and Tanaka-san for agreeing to let me experience this," she said aloud to herself.

The three all worked at a fabric factory where they made clothes and enjoyed each other's company at the same time. Mitsuki sighed once again and fell back on to the soft bed. How she always wanted to sleep in a bed like this! It was like a dream come true.

Tonight, she would be able to take a proper bath and be clean when she went to sleep. Thinking about all the other good things that she could do tonight, she fell asleep where she had lain on the bed with a smile on her face.

* * *

Thank you guys for reading! Please read and review. I've already written part of the second chapter so hopefully that will be up soon.

Japanese words used:

Haiyaku onegai-shimasu – hurry please

_Otou-san _– father

_Kuso_ – damn

_Nan desu ka _– what?

_Hana _– flower

_Iie _– no

_Hai_ – yes

_Kawaii_ – cute

_Arigato gozaimasu_ – thank you very much

_Obaa-chan_ – grandmother


	2. The Letter

Find Me True Love

By: Orenji.Tea

Genre: Alternate Universe/Romance/Drama

Pairing: Mostly Takuto/Mitsuki, some bits of Takuto/Meroko, and Misuki/Izumi

Rated: R

Summary: A/U. Prince Takuto is forced by his otou-san, Lord Wakaouji, to find a woman to become his wife before he retires. Takuto finally finds a girl that he wants to spend the rest of his life with but does she love him back? Can true love be torn apart by jealousy and hatred?

A/N: Alrighty, presenting the second chapter of the fic. This chapter doesn't really have that much action, unfortunately. I already started the third chapter so it will probably be up in less than a week (hopefully XD).

Disclaimer: I do not own any of the characters and I am merely borrowing them. They all belong to Arina Tanemura.

* * *

Chapter 2: The Letter 

Mitsuki opened her eyes and was immediately blinded by the light. She tried to hide her head back under the expensive but warm covers, but the light was still bothering her.

'Doesn't this place have any curtains?' she thought as she squinted to find anything that would shade away the light in the room.

"Princess Mitsuki-sama!" a voice behind her spoke.

She turned around to face the person. It was Ooshige-san who had done her make-up yesterday. "Ooshige-san! Ohayo –"

"Oh, I have such good news for you!" the young woman interrupted her happily. Ooshige-san couldn't have been more than 25 years old. "You won't believe it, Mitsuki-sama! Lord Wakaouji announced this morning that Prince Takuto had selected you to be his wife!"

Mitsuki stood there stunned, her face full of shock. 'Impossible,' she thought.

She must have said her thoughts aloud. "Oh, it's not impossible, it's true!" the woman said happily and started to hug her and kiss her on the cheek. "I'm so proud of you!"

Mitsuki didn't know what to think as she just stood there while being embraced by the older woman. She didn't know if she should be happy or if she should be angry or sad. It definitely wasn't supposed to turn out this way! It had all been for fun and for nothing else! Plus, she was only sixteen years old. What about her family that she had left behind?

Too many things were jumbled all into her mind. She couldn't think. She sat down slowly onto the edge of her bed and sighed. "Princess, what's wrong?" Ooshige-san asked with concern in her voice. "Do you need a glass of water? Anything to eat?"

Mitsuki shook her head. "Daijobu desu," she responded but inside she wasn't. "Ooshige-san," Mistuki said suddenly but seriously, "I need you to tell him that I cannot marry his son."

It was the only way. She couldn't marry him. First, she wasn't even a real princess and if he found that out later on, bad things could happen.

"Demo, Princess! I can't do such a thing!" the woman said.

"You must!" Mitsuki tried to be forceful. She wasn't used to it and didn't feel so good when she was demanding at other people as if they were lower and more inferior to her. "..For me…"

"H-hai…" the woman sighed, "as you wish."

Mitsuki heard her closer the door behind her in defeat, leaving herself to deal on her own. 'Oh, what should I do?' she screamed in her head. What she had thought would have been fun to just experience had turned upside down. She never knew that she would get picked and now the to-be wife of a prince!

Her stomach rumbled. She had other things to think about first: her hunger. She decided to get dressed and then go down to get some breakfast. After finding the dress that she had worn yesterday, she attempted to put it back on.

'How do you put this on?' she wondered as she looked at it in her hands.

It seemed impossible to put on because there were so many strings that you had to pull at the same time while dressing. Finally after figuring out how to put it on, it still took her almost half an hour to finish dressing herself.

She looked at herself in the mirror. Was that really the same girl that she had been a few days ago? She looked like a totally different person. 'Is that really me?' she thought with wide eyes.

Suddenly, there was a knock on the door. "Ooshige-san?" she said when she opened the door. But when she looked around, there was no one there.

'Eh, that's strange,' she thought. 'Is someone trying to pull a prank on me?'

She was about to close the door when she heard a ruffling sound down beneath. Looking down, she saw a semi-crumpled sheet of paper. Picking it up from the ground, she read:

_So, it seems like you've won the affection of the Prince. I would like to congratulate you. Meet me today in the West Garden at midnight sharp. Don't miss this or else._

_- M.Y. (if you were smart, you would know who this is) _

'Who is this from?' she thought.

She didn't know anyone with the initials M.Y. And why would anyone want to meet her? It seemed like the person who wrote this was threatening her if she didn't show up.

Just then the doorbell rang and she ran to get the door again, forgetting about the letter that she had found. This time she was smart enough to check the hole in the door to see if there was anyone there first. And there was. It was the make-up woman again. She looked tired.

"Hai?" Mitsuki asked when she opened the door.

She saw the woman hesitate. "L-Lord W-Wakaouji orders that you must stay here at the castle and cannot leave."

She wanted to cry. She could feel the burning in her eyes. Now she was stuck here and couldn't even go back home to her village to tell her obaa-chan and Tanaka-san. Why didn't she ask her to go see Prince Takuto and ask him instead of Lord Wakaouji! She mentally hit herself. She had accidentally forgotten to go to him instead. If only she had, maybe he would have been nice enough to let her go home. But now…there was definitely no way that she could leave since the Lord had ordered her to stay.

'Baka! Baka! Baka!' she cursed silently to herself. She didn't want Ooshige-san to see her cry.

"Leave, Ooshige-san…kudasai," she said it harsher than she intended to. Oh Lord, what was wrong with her! She couldn't believe she was becoming so mean and ruthless to everyone, but she knew she had to do it this time.

"H-hai," the woman stuttered and quickly flew out the door in a flash. Mitsuki could tell that she was hurt from the sound of her voice.

She glanced at the clock. It was around 12:17 p.m. now. Since she was going to have to stay here at the castle from now on, she might as well take a tour of the castle. She looked around the room to see if there was anything valuable to take with her when she went out of her room. Unfortunately, it seemed like there was no lock on her door so anyone could enter her room. Scanning the room, she saw the small picture of Eichi on her table.

'Eichi…' she thought.

Taking it, she put it in one of the pockets in her dress. (A/N: Yes, her dress has pockets for some odd reason XD) She quickly glanced one more time around the room to see if there was anything else, and she walked out of her door and closed it behind her.

She walked out into the hallway and couldn't help but awe at the beautiful decorations and furniture in every room or hall that she passed by. She had been so busy and nervous yesterday that she didn't have anytime to appreciate the ornaments at all.

It was all really beautiful, but it must have been extremely expensive. Money had always been an issue in her family so she usually didn't spend it on luxuries such as these.

She passed by many more rooms, many of them with many maids and servants scrubbing and dusting the place. 'Maybe I can ask one of these servants to tell me where the West Garden is,' she thought as she realized she didn't know where the West Garden was and she needed to be there this afternoon.

She soon entered a big room that looked almost like a waiting room. It was empty except for a large sofa and a few chairs. "Sumimasen," Mitsuki said when she saw a middle aged maid dusting in one corner of the large room. The woman didn't seem to here her.

She cleared her throat and tried again. "Eh, sumimasen," she said a little louder this time.

The woman finally looked up. "Nan desu ka?" she asked with a furrow in her brow. When she saw Mitsuki's dress and sophisticated jewellery, she right away bent down on one knee and bowed.

"Gomenasai! Sumimasen for my rude behavior!" she said.

"It's okay," Mitsuki responded, "it's fine, really. I just want to know where the West Garden is. I was hoping you could give me directions?"

There was a pause as the woman's face turned from normal to suddenly a look of horror after what Mitsuki said.

"Nani?" Mitsuki asked.

"The..W-West G-garden?" the woman stuttered. She regained her control of her words again and said, "The West Garden is forbidden to enter, even for you, Princess. In fact, we're not even supposed to mention about it."

The servant put her finger to her lips. "Then how am I supposed to get there –"

She hadn't even finished saying what she wanted to say when the woman just walked away from her and continued cleaning the floor in the next room. 'Oh! That's so rude!' she thought in her mind.

Her confidence level was now a little bit lower but she knew she had to try to find the West Garden before midnight tonight. The person might find her and hurt her if she didn't come! She definitely needed to be confident. Yes, she needed to be.

She walked out of the room and decided to enter another one. For some reason, something in the back of her mind told her not to go, but her body decided to go against her conscience again. She put her hand on the golden knob and slowly opened the door. What she saw next was something that she'd never think she would ever see in her lifetime.

* * *

Cliffhanger! Stay tuned to check out what happens next! (Haha..that sounded kind of like some sort of a tv show ending, doesn't it . oo.. The next chapter will probably be out by next week. Please read and review. Thanks! 

Pearl Dragon: Thank you so much! I actually really dislike Takuto together with Meroko too! XP I really like Takuto x Mitsuki and Izumi x Mitsuki.

bloodyredsilver: Thanks for reviewing :) Well, here's the new update and the 3rd chapter will be up soon too.


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